I disagree with your assertion that most art was produced with the enjoyment of the patron as the primary motive. It could easily have been a byproduct or a nec

I disagree with your assertion that most art was produced with the enjoyment of the patron as the primary motive. It could easily have been a byproduct or a necessary evil. Or, it could be that patrons were more deferential to the artists of the day. Plenty of great artists have been unpopular or unknown in their day. Also, plenty of the popular artists were doing much more than letting the piper call the tune. Shakespeare and the Beatles pushed boundaries, they didn't take requests. If there's a cultural narcissism, perhaps it is now that patrons demand immediate accessibility and relevance. It seems far more vain and arrogant to condemn an artist because they didn't ask for your opinion first. Besides, I think much of that is a straw man. Most artists do care what other people think; they just don't care about what everybody thinks.